Structure of free radicals in irradiated acetyl-L-leucine single crystals at 77 K

By using the EPR method, two types of radicals are observed, which are formed in acetyl-L-leucine single crystals irradiated at 77K. These are alkyl type radicals (CH/sub 3/)/sub 2/CCH/sub 2/CH(NHCOCH/sub 3/)COOH and peptide group radicals. When the crystals are defrozen to room temperatures, the radicals of the second type disappear without formation of paramagnetic particles. Two possible structures of the peptide group radicals were studied by the INDO method. On defreezing to room temperature, the alkyl group radical is retained, while the peptide radical disappears without formation of paramagnetic particles. For the protonated form of the anion-radical, a better agreement is observed between the theoretically calculated and the experimentally obtained HFI constants. The quantum chemical analysis of the possible structures of the peptide group radicals indicates that the formation of the protonated form of the anion-radical is energetically favorable.